Twitter acquires TweetDeck — NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — Twitter has acquired TweetDeck, an application for organizing the display of tweets, for more than $40 million in a mix of cash and stock, according to sources close to the deal. — TweetDeck has been the subject of speculation about deals for months.

Apple's iTunes store: 500,000 iOS apps and counting — Less than three years after it opened for business, the App Store hit the half-million mark — Click to enlarge. Source: 148Apps, Chomp and Chillingo — Here's a nice round number likely to be trotted out at the Apple's (AAPL) Worldwide Developers Conference in June.

Full text: Apple Legal's letter to Lodsys — Dear Mr. Small: I write to you on behalf of Apple Inc. ("Apple") regarding your recent notice letters to application developers ("App Makers") alleging infringement of certain patents through the App Makers' use of Apple products and services for the marketing …

Developer News: Beta Mango Tools Available Today — Today Microsoft is showing off many of the new features coming in the next version of Windows Phone, code named Mango. We highlighted a few features like hardware accelerated IE9 with HTML5, increased multitasking capabilities and the addition …

Apple Output May Drop 500,000 IPads — Apple Inc. may face a production loss of 500,000 iPad 2 tablets after the explosion at Foxconn Technology Group's plant in Chengdu, China, according to research firm IHS ISuppli. — The drop in manufacturing will depend on how long the plant …

The Truth About Square — There's lots of talk today on mobile payment processor Square's outstanding results. 500,000 readers shipped, 1 million transactions so far this month, $3 million in transactions per day. — That's impressive. There really is a real need out there for the everyday consumer …

Sony shows off, folds up super flexible organic TFT display — E-reader manufacturers are doing their darnedest to get their devices to behave more like the old fashioned books we've all since abandoned, but we won't be happy until we can roll one up and stuff it in our back pockets, paperback-style.

Sony Music Japan hacked through SQL injection flaw — Another day, another attack on Sony. I reported yesterday on the SQL injection attack exposing user information on SonyMusic.gr and today attackers have found flaws in SonyMusic.co.jp. — The Hacker News sent us a tip this evening documenting …

80% of Mobile Video Views Happen on Apple Devices — Mobile video is still a small part of overall online viewing, but it's a part that Apple dominates, according to a new report by video monetization startup FreeWheel. In its Q1 2011 Video Monetization Report, FreeWheel said the vast majority …

Dell XPS 15z review — For years, Dell's been teasing supermodel-thin laptops, each one flawed out of the gate: too pricey, too underpowered, and with underwhelming battery life. This time, Dell told us we'd get something different — a laptop without compromise.

Opera Mini for iPad Now Available — A few months after the first teaser shots and previews that confirmed Opera was working on an iPad version of its alternative browser featuring visual tabs and updated sharing options for the larger screen, the Norwegian company has finally released …

Oh, @#$%, Half Of Facebookers' Walls Have Profanity — Oh, golly! About half of Facebookers' walls have cuss words on them. — That comes from scans of the 30,000-plus Facebook members' walls by Reppler over the past two months. The company found: — 47 percent of users have profanity on their Facebook wall.

Revamped Yahoo Mail Peels Off Beta Stamp — Yahoo announced late on Monday that it is ready with a final version of its updated mail software in an effort to regain momentum in the free Webmail arena, where it competes with Google and Microsoft. — In addition to offering speed improvements …

Fear of a VC Monoculture — It's a great time to raise money! Or is it? — The venture community is more lively than its been in the last decade. Returns are starting to flow and many are reaping the benefits of a diverse venture ecosystem that began to flourish in the wake …

Apple Buys 200+ Patents from Freescale Semiconductor — Apple Inc. recently recorded the receipt of 200 patents and pending patent applications from the electronics company Freescale Semiconductor, Inc. Although not recorded until May 18, 2011, the assignment is dated April 11, 2011.

YouTube Extends Plans for Ads Before Videos — In the early days of online video, commercials that appeared before viewers could watch clips, known as preroll, got “thumbs down” from most computer users. That attitude seems to have softened more recently, a change of heart that Web giants have noticed.

At Dropbox, Over 100 Billion Files Served-And Counting — Once upon a time, in the year 2007, Dropbox consisted of two engineers coding in their boxers out of a shared apartment in the North Beach neighborhood of San Francisco. To co-founder and CEO Drew Houston, launching a successful company …